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So I’ve been watching this drama for the past month and my GOD this show is so intense!!!
Party of Five is about five siblings who lost their parents in a car accident, and now their 24 year old irresponsible brother is forced to take on the role of their legal guardian.
1) Charlie (24 years old) is the oldest, a college dropout, good at seducing the ladies and is into carpentry. After the death of his parents, which happened on a night he was babysitting his siblings, Charlie was thrusted with a huge responsibility: becoming his siblings’ legal guardian. Not only did he not want that role, but he also wasn’t fit for it at all. He messes up a lot, and his younger brother, Bailey, always cleans up his mess. However, Charlie had to sacrifice a lot for his younger siblings, and eventually becomes a very dependable older brother and father to them.
2) Bailey (16 years old) is the second sibling and at the start the most responsible. He takes on the maternal role, taking care of everyone in the household, heck even their baby brother’s bed is in his room. Bailey, more often than not, tries to break away from his role as the responsible brother who cleans up the mess of Charlie and his other siblings.
3) Julia (15 years old) is the third child and oldest sister. She is known for her intelligence and being a bookworm. She’s basically a sensitive and insecure nerd. However, after the death of her parents, Julia rebels against her old persona: she starts working in a night club, ditches her nerdy friends and befriends the popular crowd. She eventually grows out of this phase and becomes more responsible.
4) Claudia (11 years old) is the fourth and youngest sister. She inherited her mother’s musical talent and is a skilled violinist. Poor Claudia had to make sacrifices of her own as well, for example, in the first season, she is the only one without a bedroom. Her bedroom is a tent in the living room. Her problems are rarely her siblings’ first priority, and is often forgotten and neglected.
5) Owen (1 year old) is the youngest sibling. Owen doesn’t really have an arc or a personality as he’s a baby. He’s mostly used as a plot-device to move the story forwards.
I often struggle to pick a favorite character as all characters charm and annoy me in different situations. Though I find myself drawn to either Charlie or Bailey. Sometimes I love Claudia. I’m not a huge fan of Julia. Most of her storylines are about the boys she dates and it’s probably why she’s the least interesting one IMO, but whenever she has a different storyline, I’m gripped.
In each season, there’s that one huge and awesome episode:
Season 1: The Thanksgiving episode where the driver who killed the kids’ parents is released from jail months earlier.
Season 2: The abortion episode.
Season 3: The Intervention episode.
Season 4: The revelation of Charlie’s cancer episode.
Season 5: The Judgement Day episode (which I've just watched and was incredibly intense) though another episode was also very strong - the episode where 5 years old Owen gets lost in the mall.
I’m about to finish S5 right now, and I've only got S6 and then the show will be over. But all I’m gonna say, it’s a great show with great characters. It’s a bit dated in a lot of aspects, especially in the way Bailey treats his girlfriends - which I hated a lot, but he’s improved so much from S4 on.
One of the highlights is the 90s guest stars!!! Cory and Shawn (Boy Meets World) appeared in different episodes as Claudia’s boyfriends. Ben Wyatt (Parks and Recreation) is attracted to Julia in college. Mary Alice Young (Desperate Housewives) was Charlie’s rich girlfriend in S2. Steven Hyde (That 70s Show) was one of the members in the band Sarah (Jennifer Love Hewitt) joined, Sarah being Bailey’s girlfriend.
Anyone remember this show? Also, can anyone recommend a show like this where family is the main theme, something like Parenthood. It's my kind of drama.
